This thesis focuses on the production of travel guidebooks. Its aim is to explore the mutual coconstruction
and entanglement of genres, producers and institutions in cultural production and
cultural work. It also examines how authorial and institutional, professional and industrial selfreflexivity
exists in and through ambiguous and shifting interrelations with genres and their
poetics. To this end, it develops a preliminary theoretical framework for a comprehensive
exploration of the complex dynamics of cultural production that is attentive to the cultural objects
themselves: here, a down-market, ‘uninventive’ and ‘heteronomous’ genre known as the travel
guide(book). The thesis argues that the specificity of the genre is continually contextualized and
re-contextualized, qualified and re-qualified, commodified and rendered autonomous, in the daily,
local, and intimate practices of guide-making.
The argument presented is that the genre is not merely a backdrop for creative agency or a predetermined
set of rules, but a complex entity – spatially and temporally dispersed – that affords
autonomous opportunities for various modes of action, self-definition, and self-interpretation.
Thus, genres are active elements or animating forces of cultural production, rather than merely
outcomes of industrial dynamics. What arises from the empirical material is that cultural
producers experience ‘autonomy’ in and through the notion of genre which itself is fuzzy, vague,
tacit, implicit and often non-formalized. Nonetheless, it is obdurately present in a spectrum of
strategies, rhetoric, a sense of responsibility, expertise and professionalism applied by such
producers in order to explain, define and justify their practical decisions and evaluations.
The first three chapters explore perceived limitations of sociological, anthropological and sociocultural
paradigms of cultural production. They also indicate some potential areas for crossfertilization
with genre theory, which has conceptualized the notion of genre as social action,
cognitive action-schemata, and institutions that mediate between industry, producers, and
audiences. The last four chapters follow and trace interpenetrating and interlocking relations
between genres and institutions firstly, as they mutually and historically co-produce each other in
industrial practice; secondly, as entangled in individual and professional auto-biographies with
reference to the genre and its adjacent markets; and third, as embedded in actual production
practices - how guidebook producers make use of and interact with the editorial brief (or
institutionalized and contractually binding genre specificity) and independent genre trajectories
(autonomous logic), while making daily evaluations of their work and their own professional selfreflexivity.

Filer i denne post: 1

Using novel statistical data, the paper analyzes the geographical distribution of Richard Florida’s creative class among 445 European cities. The paper demonstrates that size matters, i.e. cities with a high proportion of creative class tend to get more creative through attraction of still more creative labor. More specifically, the distribution of the European creative class falls into three phases, each approximating a rank-size rule, with different exponents (i.e., inequality). The exponent for the smallest cities is profoundly more negative than for the middle-sized cities, and this tendency is stronger for the creative class than for the general population. Furthermore, the exponent of the largest cities is slightly less negative than the middle-sized cities, and this tendency is also stronger for the creative class. In order to explain this, the paper presents four propositions about how effects of large and small population sizes of cities may be more detrimental to attracting the creative class than attracting the population in general. Below a population size of approximately 70,000 inhabitants, there is a rapid drop of attractiveness to the creative class with decreasing city size. We propose that this may be because below this size, cities begin to drop below minimum efficient market sizes for particular creative services, below minimum labor market sizes for particular creative job types, and below minimum levels of political representation by the creative class. Above a European city population size of approximately 1,2 million inhabitants, the attractiveness of increasing city size for the creative class drops, and we propose that the creative class may respond particularly adversely to urban congestion.

There is a widely held view that a lack of, “…customer understanding,” is one of the
main reasons for product failure (Eliashberg et al., 1997, p. 219). This is despite the
fact that new product development (NPD) is a crucial business process for many
companies. The importance of integrating the voice of the customer (VoC) through
market research is well documented (Davis, 1993; Mullins and Sutherland, 1998;
Cooper et al., 2002; Flint, 2002; Davilla et al., 2006; Cooper and Edgett, 2008;
Cooper and Dreher, 2010; Goffin and Mitchell, 2010).
However, not all research methods are well received, for example there are
studies that have strongly criticized focus groups, interviews and surveys (e.g.
Ulwick, 2002; Goffin et al, 2010; Sandberg, 2002). In particular, a point is made that,
“…traditional market research and development approaches proved to be particularly
ill-suited to breakthrough products” (Deszca et al, 2010, p613). Therefore, in
situations where traditional techniques—interviews and focus groups—are
ineffective, the question is which market research techniques are appropriate,
particularly for developing breakthrough products? To investigate this, an attempt was
made to access the knowledge of market research practitioners from agencies with a
reputation for their work on breakthrough NPD. We were surprised to find that this
research had not been conducted previously.
In order to make it possible for the sample of 24 market research experts
identified for this study to share their knowledge, repertory grid technique was used.
This psychology based method particularly seeks out tacit knowledge by using indepth
interviews. In this case the interviews were conducted with professionals from
leading market research agencies in two countries. The resulting data provided two
unique insights: they highlighted the attributes of market research methods which
made them effective at identifying customers’ needs and they showed how different
methods were perceived against these attributes.
This article starts with a review of the literature on different methods for
conducting market research to identify customer needs. The conclusions from the
literature are then used to define the research question. We explain our choice of
methodology, including the data collection and analysis approach. Next the key
results are presented. Finally, the discussion section identifies the key insights,
clarifies the limitations of the research, suggests areas for future research, and draws
implications for managers.
We conclude that existing research is not aligned with regard to which
methods (or combination of methods) are best suited to the various stages of the NPD
process. We have set out the challenges and our own intended work in this regard in
our section on ‘further research’. Also, the existing literature does not explicitly seek
the perceptions of practitioner experts based in market research agencies. This we
have started to address, and we acknowledge that further work is required.
Although our research in ongoing, it has already yielded the first view of a
model of the perceptions of 24 expert market researchers in the UK and Denmark.
Based on the explanation of these experts, the model situates a derived set of
categories in a manner that reflects the way in which they are inter-linked. We believe
that our model begins to deal with the gaps and anomalies in the existing research into
VoC methods.

Filer i denne post: 1

The paper aims to address the question whether the dynamic of autoworker unionism in South Korea and Malaysia was conditioned by, and eventually also influenced the globalization processes in the local auto industry? The conclusion is a contextualized "yes", and the core argument is the following: The financial crisis in 1997 was the dramatic peak of financial globalization in East Asia in the 1990s, and it did accelerate the existing trend in Korea towards centralized unionism in the auto industry, while it suspended the trend in the Malaysian auto industry towards decentralized unionism. Although the Korean and Malaysian unions were affected by the financial crisis from different structural and strategic positions, and were exposed to different national policies and corporate strategies of crisis management, the Korean unions and Malaysian unions generally followed, respectively, a more radical and militant and a more pragmatic and moderate strategy. In the global-local perspective we face two paradoxes. The first paradox is that in spite of the difference in union ideology, the outcome in terms of industrial relations (IR) institutions was rather similar in the sense that the auto industry contained a mixture of industrial and enterprise unions and formal or informal federations of these unions, and that collective bargaining was by and large undertaken bilaterally at the enterprise level. This situation was generated by a dynamic, which took the Malaysian system down from a centralized IR system within the low technology assembly industry (the globally subordinated local OEMs) to a rather decentralized IR system within the SOE-MNC controlled industry. The Korean system became more centralized through the confrontations between radical enterprise unions and authoritarian employers and authorities within an auto industry, which over time become much more indigenized, technologically advanced, export-oriented and diversified into multiple auto manufacturers and an under-wood of component suppliers. Yet, in both auto industries the large enterprise unions resisted organizational centralization, which could impede their autonomy. Due to the strength of unions of the market leading firms a breakthrough did happen neither in Korea nor in Malaysia, although the Koreans were a step ahead of the Malaysians having established a federation of metalworkers unions, including the important autoworkers unions. The second paradox is that the radicalism of the Korean autoworker unions was maintained during 1990s globalization of the auto industry, while radicalism was abandoned by the Malaysian autoworker unions in favor of union pragmatism, when the indigenization of the Malaysian auto industry unfolded since the early 1980s and a local auto supplier industry had been formed. This cross-country difference is partly explained by the different position held by the Korean and Malaysian auto companies in the global and local auto value chain. The radicalism and effectiveness of Korean autoworker unions sustained the development of dynamic efficiency among Korean auto manufacturing firms. In the same way, the intra-industry differences in wages and working conditions among auto manufacturing firms and components supplier firms were also related to the stratification of the domestic auto value chain, and this uneven distribution of benefits created obstacles of centralized unionization and collective bargaining. The centralized IR system in Malaysia evolved in an auto industry composed primarily of firms assembling imported CKD kits of components. The inequality of employment conditions between auto manufacturers and component suppliers was a driver of the strategy of centralized unionism and collective bargaining in Korea, while the inequality was not perceived as that significant by the Malaysian industrial union, since they had been dealing with these problems by the early 1990s.
Keywords: Globalisation, trade unions, automobile industry, global value chain theory, East Asia, Malaysia, South Korea.

Filer i denne post: 1

Many formulations of contemporary globalization suggest that citizenship is being radically transformed by processes of transnationalism. And the business world is reacting to this sense of change by firms claiming to be ‘global corporate citizens’. But what exactly does global corporate citizenship mean and what are its implications? In this paper a preliminary response is made to these questions by situating corporate citizenship within the wider framework of constitutional debates about private economic law and the juridicalization of the international sphere more generally. The paper poses the issue of whether there is a quasi-constitutionalization of the international corporate sphere underway and the possible governance consequences of this process.

Filer i denne post: 1

Over the past decade, European businesses have accelerated internationalization, expanding within and beyond Europe. I argue that a major driving force behind this push towards global presence is the restructuring of corporate diversification strategies, which in turn is a result of gradual changes in industry structure and the institutional environment in home markets as well as global markets. The strategic change converts diversified conglomerates to global specialists in narrower niche markets. It brings them in direct confrontation with a small number of key competitors operating worldwide. On this stage, key competitive advantages are gained by making best use of resources across the world, and by effective global integration of operations. Hence de-diversification and internationalization are opposite sides of the same coin: globalfocusing. The argument is developed based on inductive case research of the restructuring in two Danish manufacturing enterprises, and a review of overall trends in Danish businesses. On this basis, I analyze the economic and institutional forces driving this process, and suggest propositions for empirical testing. The paper points to consequences of liberalization, and is thus of high relevance for managers and policy makers in countries that are not yet as open as Denmark.

Filer i denne post: 1

Abstract: The growth of collaborative activity is greatly influenced by the process of globalisation. This paper focuses on the narrow area of collaborative R&D activity, and takes a ‘macro’ view of the effects of these developments. Globalisation has affected the need of firms to collaborate, in that firms now seek opportunities to cooperate, rather than identify situations where they can achieve majority control. The use of collaboration is particularly acute in capital-intensive and knowledge-intensive sectors. These are also the sectors where firms have expanded internationally fastest, as they need to compete in various markets simultaneously, but also to exploit and acquire assets and technology that may be specific to particular locations. The increasing similarity of technologies across countries and cross-fertilisation of technology between sectors, coupled with the increasing costs and risks associated with innovation has led firms to consider R&D alliances as a first-best option in many instances. This has important welfare implications and impinges directly on the industrial competitiveness of locations.

Filer i denne post: 1

This paper undertakes a brief evaluation of the trends in the internationalization of innovative
activities. We provide a taxonomy of R&D internationalization strategies, and discuss the main relevant theoretical and empirical issues, before discussing the centripetal and centrifugal forces underlying the nature and evolution of cross border innovation. We address the issue of
international technology partnering as a key strategy that is complementary to the
internationalisation of innovative activities through internal means, before raising important
policy dimensions and directions for future research that derive from these debates.
Key words: R&D internationalization, globalisation, multinationals, alliances, technology policy
JEL Codes: F23, O32

Filer i denne post: 1

Boundary-crossing Leadership Cooperation in the MNC The Case of ‘Group Mindset’ in Solar A/S

Nielsen, Rikke Kristine(Frederiksberg, 2014)

[Flere oplysninger]

[Færre oplysninger]

Resume:

This dissertation deals with global mindset leadership understood as border- and boundary-crossing
leadership within the multinational corporation by exploring the concept of global mindset as both an
individual managerial meta-competence, as well as a strategic organizational capability. The research
project presented explores the practical and theoretical avenues for working with global mindset as a
strategic lever and method of securing business strategy executional agility, which is explored in the
context of a single-case study organization, Solar - an internationalizing medium-sized MNC seeking to
work in practice with global mindset leadership development and enactment as a strategy execution
facilitator.
Internationalizing corporations often experience the liability of foreignness when moving into new markets,
and in effect suffer a globalization penalty vis-à-vis local competition in different markets. At the same time,
they are pushed to consider the potential non-transferability of domestic competitive advantages and business
models, when moving into new territory and may have to make adjustments to cater to different customer
preferences and other local specificities in a variety of markets simultaneously. Further, international and
global collaboration is more complex than local collaboration and as a consequence, corporations need to be
better at collaborating in order to receive the same effect compared to domestic operations alone. This is due
to the fact that culturally and strategically employees and managers at all hierarchical levels understand each
other less, while language barriers may at the same time place a strain on communication and collaboration.
Transaction costs rise as corporations move from high-context collaboration with low psychic distance in a
domestic setting or between relatively similar groupings, where many things are shared and taken for granted
and thus need not be explicated to a low-context communication setting where little or no common ground
can be taken for granted. This dissertation argues the case that leadership with a global mindset is relevant
for companies and organizations that make strategic use of global mindset as a driver for global business
strategy. As such global mindset is seen as strategic global mindset in that the rationale for developing global
mindset is as a facilitator of business strategy. The context of the individual company is an indicator for what
global mindset means in the particular company, and for who can benefit from it. Global mindset is not seen
as generic, but highly contextual when looking at the practical implementation of the concept empirically.
The aim of working with global mindset, then, is the optimization of global mindset in relation to the
context, the managerial role and the business strategy, not an end in itself.

In this exploratory study we take a strategic management approach to global sourcing of
advanced services. We discuss in which ways conventional sourcing differs from strategic
sourcing and what impels firms to aim for the latter (or, prevent them from doing so).
Potentially, strategic global sourcing of services has high returns, but is also associated with
high risks and needs for organizational changes. Strategic global sourcing may therefore be
outside firms’ “comfort zone” – a composite of organizational knowledge transferability,
structural inertia, managers’ risk preferences, and – most interesting in a strategic
management perspective ‐ their ability to mitigate risks of strategic global sourcing. One
important risk reducing measure is internalization of (out)sourced service activities. Many firms
instigate global sourcing via conventional offshore outsourcing. However, as the human asset
specificity of the outsourcing operation increases, firms are pulled out of their comfort zones
and a desire for internalization arises. An illustrative company case gives suggestions as to
how, in practice, internalization may be accomplished without losing valuable human assets
held by the local service providers.

In this exploratory study we take a strategic management approach to global sourcing of
advanced services. We discuss in which ways conventional sourcing differs from strategic
sourcing and what impels firms to aim for the latter (or, prevent them from doing so).
Potentially, strategic global sourcing of services has high returns, but is also associated with
high risks and needs for organizational changes. Strategic global sourcing may therefore be
outside firms’ “comfort zone” – a composite of organizational knowledge transferability,
structural inertia, managers’ risk preferences, and – most interesting in a strategic
management perspective ‐ their ability to mitigate risks of strategic global sourcing. One
important risk reducing measure is internalization of (out)sourced service activities. Many firms
instigate global sourcing via conventional offshore outsourcing. However, as the human asset
specificity of the outsourcing operation increases, firms are pulled out of their comfort zones
and a desire for internalization arises. An illustrative company case gives suggestions as to
how, in practice, internalization may be accomplished without losing valuable human assets
held by the local service providers.

Filer i denne post: 1

‘Good’ Outcomes – Handling Multiplicity in Government Communication This thesis examines how five Danish government organizations produce and assess communicative solutions in practice, and argues that government communication may be understood as a case of multiplicity. In the practices of producing and assessing communicative solutions it is uncertain what constitutes a ‘good’ outcome of government communication. This uncertainty is grasped by drawing upon analytical resources from the field of multiplicity-oriented ANT analyses. Empirically, the thesis is based on ethnographic fieldwork conducted at the five government organizations. Combining empirical observations, theoretical insights, and political programmes, four ‘modes of ordering’ are developed and these are utilized in exploring how the multiplicity of government communication unfurls and how it is handled in practice. The thesis shows how the ordering attempts described by the four modes of ordering coexist and interfere, and it suggests the notions of ‘sequencing’ and ‘singularizing’ for understanding how the multiplicity of government communication is handled in the production and assessment of communicative solutions. The study upon which the thesis reports has been carried out in connection with a larger Industrial PhD project, entitled Measurements you can learn from, that aimed at developing, testing, and implementing new and better communication measurements.